should we keep large females ready to spawn?

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Just a little poll to see what you guys think. I am guilty of it myself. Loading the basket in the heat of the battle just to get home and notice most of my fish are big females or at least keeper females full of eggs. I then wonder if I did the right thing. I have made it a habit now of letting the really nice females with eggs go and keeping the larger males which are usually around eleven inches anyhow. What do you guys think? I know for a fact I have not caught a three pound crappie and don't figure on it as long as myself or others are keeping two and a half pound fish.. . . . . . Just a thought

Throw them big girls back. So I can catch 'em :biggrin

We usually only keep the males. Don't fish much til the spawn is done. More little fishes for all of us to catch.

I've been fishing the "Big E" since the mid 70's and I can tell a sharp drop off of the fish population over the last 15 years. State biologist insist after doing their surveys that there are literally billions of crappie in Lake Eufaula and maybe they're right. I just know that back 20 years ago I could come to Lake Eufaula and return home with an ice chest full of crappie filets. I don't throw back a large female, but I do toss anything less than 10" back and feel good about doing my part for all the kids in the future.

I hear you stink. I do feel it's ok to take some big girls but not keeping everyone of them when your rip them of their nest. I remember twenty years ago too. .I won't keep anything under eleven and only take what I can eat. After years of cleaning out old fish from the freezer with a date from three years ago I figure about twelve will make a pretty good meal for two. I love catching fish and crappie being my favorite. . . They are for sure tasty but sometimes long John silvers is pretty good too. . .Lol some days just free the fighter so your kids and grandkids can catch them too.

I'm really glad to hear others feel similar to me. I think Oklahoma should have a 10" min length and I never keep anything under that. Before I moved back to OK, I hadn't cleaned a fish in many months, trying to eat the ones I already had. Still ended up giving away a freezer full of filets that wouldn't make the move and only clean what I catch now that I can eat in a reasonable amount of time.
As to the question, I don't plan to keep any spawning females anymore. I know they are very prolific spawners but, they have their natural predators and the number of crappie fishermen have increased dramatically over the past few years with no additional water damned up to fish from. I also know I'm a minority of one that feels this way. I just enjoy the thump and don't have to catch anything to have a great day on the water.
Just my personal opinion and you have a right to yours.

I'm 50-50 on this. If I know an under 10 won't survive and I'm on a lake that allows it, it'll go in the live well or bucket. I don't especially keep or return all females. But like you Bob, I just enjoy what God allows us catchin or not.

I'll definately keep any fish that isn't going to survive, legal of course. I just feel I've taken a my share over the years and catching and releasing is just as much fun as keeping everything.

Does it really matter if you keep a female full of eggs or keep her mid winter with no eggs?

I don't keep a lot of fish either. Keep enough to eat and give to the kids.

I'm new to the OK forum but crappie fished from South Carolina to here and I've experienced some extremely great fishing to not so great. I must admit I miss the fishing I had so close to my house in Conway, AR. Lake Conway has some great fishing and I've had some of my most wonderful memories on that lake. That's why when I heard they finally implemented a restriction of 10" or bigger only , I wanted to commend the AGFC. I would see so many people keep almost everything they'd catch. Man it would just tick me off. I've also tried to only keep what I know I can eat and not waste as well as only keeping 10" and bigger. However I have kept my fair share of females but don't make it a common practice. I occasionally fry the eggs and they're really good. But I don't keep very many and don't do it all the time. So I guess I'm on the fence as well.

News Release: Crappie and White Bass Fishing Is Picking Up

Won't be long now! This rain set us back a little but get ready to hang on to your poles! Thanks for the input on releasing some of those spawning females. Good luck whatever you decide. . . Hopefully throwing one or two back. Be sure to update when they start.

I have done both....to me it depends on if i need fish or not.....if i dont have 10 fish them i release them all.....if they are under ten they get released anyway..provided they are not dying....i try to bag mine in increments of 20 fillets because thats usually what we cook per meal

Andy

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Originally Posted by cpd21

I have done both....to me it depends on if i need fish or not.....if i dont have 10 fish them i release them all.....if they are under ten they get released anyway..provided they are not dying....i try to bag mine in increments of 20 fillets because thats usually what we cook per meal

Andy

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Andy, that is an ideal, conservationist plan. I applaud you for that attitude. Take what you need and release the rest is basically what I'm proposing. I know its a macho thing to limit out daily, everyday so you can brag about how good you are but, I believe we need to be thinking more about future generations so they can enjoy the sport we all love so much. Most people don't agree with me and that is fine.

But I also try to keep a couple of hundred in the freezer....because we have so many people that want fish and dont know how to catch them or they are not able to, when the kids come in...etc etc....and right now i am trying to restock the freezer. If I dont need them i will give them away to someone else that is trying to get some fish too. I see alot of people that come down to the lake and are limited on the chances to come down and i will give them fish. As long as they are getting eaten it doesn't really matter to me. I was raised "If you kill it, you eat it" and have raised both boys the same way. Now oldest and his wife live in Okc and youngest is at OSU so we try to get them in fish when they are able to come down.
We are all guilty of keeping too many, or short fish at some time, but i guarantee you they got eaten...now I am lucky enough to live close to the lake and can pretty much get crappie when we want and it is just the wife and I so we dont need that many.

Andy

I let a 2lb 10 oz female full of eggs swim yesterday. Also released a 1-12, 1-07 and a 1-04. All were full of eggs. Took pictures with the big girl to have. I've caught em large before but never put em on a digital scale.

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Originally Posted by CHECrappie

I let a 2lb 10 oz female full of eggs swim yesterday. Also released a 1-12, 1-07 and a 1-04. All were full of eggs. Took pictures with the big girl to have. I've caught em large before but never put em on a digital scale.

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Wow! That is awesome! I know it's hard to let go of that lip. . . But you would be surprised that you're are smiling as you watch that big girl swim away. Fill those baskets with males and let some of those baby makers give us something to catch next year.

Figured out how to post the picture. DUH!

Attachment 197069

I'm with Redge on this one, I don't fish a lot in the spawn I have keep some of the big girls. I read somewhere that a 10" female only has like 3,000-4,000 eggs and the big girls 14" or so has 300,000 eggs. So with all the people keeping small fish I now like to put the big girls back and catch them in post spawn. My not make any difference but I feel better. I also would like the 10" minimum on all Oklahoma lakes.

Big Fan On The 10" Length Limit Also......Ranger

Let This One (2.09) And Her LW Mates All Swim Yesterday 19 Total. All Good And Respectable Fish.....Ranger

So Ranger......where did it come from....lololol

Andy

Instead of a law against the 10 inch length limit...I would like for people to train others in the practice....because if you get one in the gills or kill it some other way I think it should be kept...but if you have one then you could get fined for it...I know I know..some people would take advantage of this but I would hate to throw one back that I have killed for the turtles to eat. Jmo

Andy

Wow nice fish ranger! I'm the same way about if I kill one I will keep it. . . I hate having to fillet one even then because I'm more likely to cut my finger off then I am getting something big enough to eat from it!

Why Andy I Took That One From The Water lol.......To much information cause me to have to walk across the boats lol. Arrowhead area Andy.......Ranger

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Originally Posted by Ranger09

Why Andy I Took That One From The Water lol.......To much information cause me to have to walk across the boats lol. Arrowhead area Andy.......Ranger

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Looks like I am going to have to give a little sermonette on SHARING at the next crappie camp. :biggrin

Unless I'm catching the same little dink over and over, I think we have an abundance of young fish in the big E. I used to keep anything my thumb would fit in it's mouth -- but I wasn't catching many so I had to keep all I could in order to make a meal. But this year (since changing out the C's at the dock), I've been catching some much bigger slabs. So I've been able to let the medium to small size ones go. I only fish a few months out of the year -- summer time is boating and floating time for us. So I have to stock my freezer during the few months that I fish. And I know my brother and his family will be coming for a visit each summer and they insist on a big fish fry. I emptied my freezer last year trying to feed that crew. But I also take some fish to my dad every year since he's not able to go fishing anymore due to his health -- and I know he misses it so much. Most of my childhood memories are of my parents and all the fishing they used to do.

I don't think you should keep any under 10" but that's my opinion.

I agree on nothing under ten unless you kill it. . . Just not enough to fillet you pretty much have to go old school and scale them to even have enough for a bite. Next to walleye crappie is my favorite fish to eat but have found that if you are feeding family and guest try serving catfish next time. I coat them in mustard then corneal. . . They are delicious. . . But really it's all about how you clean them.

"If ya need em, Eat em, but if ya don't, put em back".

I really wish they'd go 10 over 12" and 5 under. Reason being is a 10" fillet fries up so nice and a 8-9" whole fish cooks good. I can't tell you how many small fish I've killed pulling crankbaits and just had to throw them back.